The Linux Kernel Seeing Rare Code Activity Around SPARC64

"Due to SPARC International, SPARC is fully open, non-proprietary and royalty-free."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SPARC

So why are fabs not making open source SPARC processors instead of RISC-V?

Here's one company that makes both.

Their LEON processors are SPARC, and their NOEL processors are RISC-V.

https://www.gaisler.com/#reliable_computing_systems

> SPARC64 was the last architecture not using the generic vDSO library code that in turn prevented some necessary code clean-ups. With this patch series transitioning the SPARC code to the generic vDSO infrastructure saves several hundred lines of code and slightly reducing the SPARC maintenance burden.

People are still running enough SPARC64 for it to be worthy of updates?

You'd be surprised. It's still pretty prevalent at certain telecoms.

Running Linux? And up-to-date kernels?

Even if no one’s using it, it’s ok for the kernel to be supported and improved.

Well, no, not running Linux, my bad.

the update is to make it use the same codepaths as other targets so that it requires less maintenance

How much "maintenance" could be required, given how long it has been past manufacture?